Does the new Miyake offer a more beautiful, a more perfect, restaurant and meal? Yes. Which is not to say nothing has been lost. The hodge-podge staff has been replaced with a master and his coadjutors. The sense that you discovered something delightful for a song is replaced by the sense that you experienced something extraordinary for a price. When talent is rewarded, it is often transfigured too — and the super-talented often shake off youthful quirks and come to resemble each other in style and taste. The new Miyake reminds you of the best Japanese restaurants in the nation, but the old Miyake reminded you of no other place in the world. We are lucky to have it in either case.

LIMITS OF LANGUAGE | November 03, 2014 Is it enlightened or provincial that we Mainers hear “ethnic” and don’t think, as many do, exclusively of non-Europeans?

INFINITE BROOKLYNS | October 24, 2014 Last year some national magazine said that Biddeford is to Portland as Brooklyn is to New York. No. Biddeford is a mash-up of Newburg and Poughkeepsie. It is East Bayside that is our Brooklyn.

START DIGGING HERE | October 03, 2014 Because music is now basically free (thanks to torrents, Pandoras, Spotifies, etc.), the only way for musicians to make money is through constant touring and related merchandise sales. Or they can appear as a judge on The Voice. Food, on the other hand, will still cost ya...

PICK YOUR POISON | October 01, 2014 The National Institutes of Health just published a randomized study that confirms the rumors: carbohydrates are poison and should be avoided. So how should we feel about Slab Sicilian Streetfood?

A LITTLE WHINE | September 05, 2014 The lessons of Lolita are that something simpler and less challenging can be lovely, and that some cheap wine could really loosen things up.